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Middle Grade Coast-to-Coast

@mgcoast2coast.bsky.social
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Sonja Thomas @bysonjathomas.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
Say hello to my latest book, Forced to Be Friends, in the Becoming Besties Series! Taking on romance tropes, the series celebrates the love between friends instead. Each story is by a different author with different characters written under a single pen name. bysonjathomas.com/books/chapte...
Author holding Forced to Be Friends book, in front of face. On cover, Black girl with brown curls about to kick a ball. White girl in background sitting on bench with a "not amused" expression.
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Sonja Thomas @bysonjathomas.bsky.social · 17/07/2026
been feeling stuck and trying to find my way back to the joy in writing. funny how things pop up to remind you that you're never alone on this writing journey #writing @evalangston.bsky.social #WriteSky #WritingCommunity #Writers #kidlit #mglit janefriedman.com/after-my-sec...
janefriedman.com
After My Second Book Died on Submission, I Took These 4 Crucial Steps | Jane Friedman
The publishing road is full of potholes and detours, even if you get a book deal. That’s why it’s important to find joy in the writing itself.
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Sonja Thomas @bysonjathomas.bsky.social · 02/07/2026
Looking forward to participating at the Willamette Writers Conference. So many great online sessions to choose from! Check out the schedule at bit.ly/4wnhau9 #wilwrite26
bit.ly
Willamette Writers Conference 2026 Online Track – Willamette Writers
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Lisa Stringfellow @engagereaders.bsky.social · 22/03/2026
Honored to be a part of this recent episode of the Chalk and Ink podcast on vulnerability and mental health in children's literature. www.buzzsprout.com/1335571/epis...
buzzsprout.com
Vulnerability Is Bravery with Brooke Eisenbach, John Schu, Josh Galarza, Lisa Stringfellow and Meredith Adamo - Chalk and Ink: The Podcast for Teachers Who Write and Writers Who Teach
Brooke Eisenbach, John Schu, Josh Galarza, Lisa Stringfellow, and Meredith Adamo talk about how vulnerability is bravery, discuss the fact that it’s okay to not be okay and how we can help heal oursel...
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PEN America @penamerica.bsky.social · 07/04/2026
The National Association of Black Bookstores (NABB) has declared April 7 to be #NationalBlackBookstoreDay — a day to recognize the "cultural, economic, and community impact of Black-owned bookstores across the United States.” pen.org/black-owned-...
pen.org
‘I'm Glad You Are Here’: Black-Owned Bookstores Share Passion for Community
From the very first Black-owned bookstore, these spaces have been about stepping out of exclusionary environments and into welcoming ones.
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Sonja Thomas @bysonjathomas.bsky.social · 07/04/2026
Today is National Black Bookstore Day! HUGE THANKS to the owners and staff of Black bookstores across the US! www.nab2.org/directory #NationalBlackBookstoreDay #books
nab2.org
Directory — National Association of Black Bookstores
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Lisa Stringfellow @engagereaders.bsky.social · 28/02/2026
Join me at the Easthampton Public Library for an afternoon of fairy tales and fun to celebrate KINGDOM OF DUST 👑 Friday, 3/27 4:00 - 5:00 PM 52 Main St, Easthampton, MA events.timely.fun/ubjpkulq/eve...
events.timely.fun
“Kingdom of Dust”: An Afternoon with Lisa Stringfellow
More Info. Join the Easthampton Public Library for a family-friendly event with Lisa Stringfellow, author of the Massachusetts Book Awards–honored
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Authors Against Book Bans @authorsabb.bsky.social · 09/02/2026
Are you an educator in a community that has been hit hard by book bans? We Need Diverse @weneeddiversebooks.bsky.social is establishing the Unbanned Book Network. Educators have until February 13 to apply. 20 sites will be selected to receive free books, author visits, & other resources
diversebooks.org
Unbanned Book Network — We Need Diverse Books
An innovative, new initiative that combats the sharp rise in book bans by filling classroom shelves with diverse titles that have been challenged in the U.S.
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Kate Messner @katemessner.com · 03/12/2025
Teachers & librarians! If you want to Zoom with an author for World Read Aloud Day, the list of volunteers is going out in my newsletter tomorrow morning - it's not too late to sign up!
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Sonja Thomas @bysonjathomas.bsky.social · 10/11/2025
I'm so excited for the Poulsbo Kids' Book Festival this Sat, Nov 15th 11AM - 3PM! I'll be there with over 30 AMAZING authors and illustrators at North Kitsap High School in Poulsbo, WA. Visit lnkd.in/eGU5H5dK for more details. YAY! #childrensbooks #libertybaybooks #kidsbooks #mglit #kidlit
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Sonja Thomas @bysonjathomas.bsky.social · 06/11/2025
Can't wait to moderate the conversation with authors Derrick Barnes & Jose Pimienta this Sat, Nov 8 at the Portland Book Festival. Gabbie (pictured with me) says unfortunately she won't see you there. She loves books but humans not so much 😹 @literary-arts.org #diversekidlit #mglit #pdxbookfest
Literary Arts Portland Book Festival. Lost & Found: Derrick Barnes & Jose Pimienta moderated by Sonja Thomas 2PM at the Judy. Book covers of the Incredibly Human Henson Blayze by Derrick Barnes & Halfway to Somewhere by Jose Pimienta.
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Middle Grade Coast-to-Coast @mgcoast2coast.bsky.social · 27/10/2025
Check out MGC2C author @nancytandon.bsky.social's SPOOKTACULAR #middlegradebooks cover reveal below for The Haunting of Walker Pond. Available for pre-order NOW! www.simonandschuster.com/books/The-Ha... #kidlit #mglit
simonandschuster.com
The Haunting of Walker Pond
A leader-in-training at a beloved summer camp must figure out how to stop a decades-old curse in this middle grade companion novel to the “tightly ...
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Mehsi-Hime @mehsi.bsky.social · 15/10/2025
Today I am part of the magical #TopplingStackTours #BlogTour for Greta Ever After @melissadassori.bsky.social! I am shining a spotlight on the book, come check it out~ #BookBloggers #Blogging #ChildrensBooks #Dolls #FairyTales #BookPromo #BookSky📚💙 twirlingbookprincess.com/2025/10/blog...
Blog Tour Banner for Greta Ever After by Melissa Dassori featuring the cover on the left of the banner and on the banner a zoomed-in part of the cover featuring a cuckoo clock and a little doll peeking out of the top part
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Katryn Bury @katrynwrites.bsky.social · 07/10/2025
In good news (which I know I need these days), my book Drew Leclair Gets a Clue (which has been challenged in four states, and had been pulled from shelves in one county in Florida) seems to have been restored to shelves! Not sure if it's been relocated to YA but I'll take the win 🎉
Cover for Drew Leclair Gets a Clue (white girl cartoon style holding a magnifying glass)
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Karis Rogerson 🏳️‍🌈 @karisselizabeth.bsky.social · 10/10/2025
here's a piece on book bans i wrote this summer, feat. reflections and stories from authors @adibkhorram.bsky.social, @kylelukoff.bsky.social, and @katrynwrites.bsky.social as well as my own reflections. ty @electricliterature.com for publishing it! electricliterature.com/book-bans-co...
electricliterature.com
Book Bans Continue to Threaten the Wellbeing of Authors - Electric Literature
There are societal, financial, legal, and emotional consequences to book challenges, and writers are facing the brunt of these attacks
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Melissa Dassori @melissadassori.bsky.social · 10/10/2025
Great to see GRETA EVER AFTER in this fun roundup. @unteragency.bsky.social
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Authors Against Book Bans @authorsabb.bsky.social · 03/10/2025
AABB is proud to join this coalition of groups fighting for the freedom to read. Nothing gives us more hope than the understanding that while the fight may be daunting, we are not in it alone. 1/3
Standing together for the freedom to read. 

All students, all people, deserve and require access to information. 

Access to books is essential for the free exchange of ideas and for the protection of a healthy democracy. 

Books hold a pivotal role in our culture—a role that must be projected.

During Banned Books Week, we recommit ourselves to fighting censorship and authoritarianism all year round. 

Today, a well-coordinated network of politically motivated public officials, groups are attacking our fundamental freedoms—including our freedom to read. 


Thousands of books that predominantly depict people of color and LBGTQ+ people and that discuss sex, gender, sexuality, race, and racism are banned in public schools and libraries across the country. 

These attacks on school districts and public libraries, educators and librarians, authors and illustrators, and the publishers and booksellers that support them are stripping students, families, and all library patrons of their freedom to read and learn.

These efforts upend the lives of students, families, authors, illustrators, educators, and librarians. It leads to erasure from the shelves, harassment from would be censors, denial of access to books, job loss, and financial and emotional distress.
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PEN America @penamerica.bsky.social · 01/10/2025
🧵 In 2025, book censorship in the United States is rampant and common. Never before in the life of any living American have so many books been systematically removed from school libraries across the country. Read our new report "The Normalization of Book Banning" at: pen.org/report/the-n...
Graphic for PEN America report titled 'Banned in the USA: The Normalization of Book Bans'. Features a stack of colorful books in front of a blackboard with '22,810 books banned in U.S. public schools, 2021-2025' written in chalk.
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Gabrielle Plastrik @gplastrik.bsky.social · 07/09/2025
The Cybils awards are taking a hiatus this year. If you are looking for kidlit, middle grade and YA recs, please check out amazing winners from past years. Every time one of us celebrates a good book on any platform or offline, we are supporting literacy and empathy. Books help.
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tiredteachernj.bsky.social @tiredteachernj.bsky.social · 06/09/2025
Awesome mglit book and my first of the new schoolyear #gretaeverafter @melissadassori.bsky.social @littlebrownyr.bsky.social thank you for sharing with #bookallies
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Lisa Stringfellow @engagereaders.bsky.social · 03/09/2025
Thrilled and honored to see KINGDOM OF DUST included on NYPL's Vibrant Voices Titles for Kids list for 2025-2026! Thank you to the librarians and staff of the library for sharing my book with your patrons! www.nypl.org/books-more/r... @harperkids.bsky.social
New York Public Library Vibrant Voices New Books from Authors of Color. Kingdom of Dust by Lisa Stringfellow
In this West African-inspired fantasy, a ruthless king conquesrs the kingdom of kun, turning the once-opulent city into ruins. When Amara learns of her destiny, she goes off to restore magic and justice--before Kun is lost forever.
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Lisa Stringfellow @engagereaders.bsky.social · 03/09/2025
KINGDOM OF DUST is a Massachusetts Book Award Honor Book! 🎉 Thank you so much to the Mass Center for the Book for this amazing honor! Congratulations also to Robin Wasley and Desmond Hall for their awards. I'm thrilled to be in their company.
Massachusetts Book Award Middle Grade Honor Title
Kingdom of Dust by Lisa StringfellowMassachusetts Book Awards
Award to Dead Things are Closer Than They Appear by Robin Wasley
Honors to Better Must Come by Desmond Hall and Kingdom of Dust by Lisa Stringfellow
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Lisa Stringfellow @engagereaders.bsky.social · 20/08/2025
It’s KINGDOM OF DUST’s first birthday! I’m proud of this little book and glad readers are still finding it. @harperkids.bsky.social #middlegrade www.lisastringfellow.com/kingdom-of-d...
Happy Book Birthday, Lisa Stringfellow
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Middle Grade Coast-to-Coast @mgcoast2coast.bsky.social · 19/08/2025
Happy Book Birthday to MG Coast-to-Coast author @melissadassori.bsky.social! Her second book, GRETA EVER AFTER, is out today!! #kidlit #mglit
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Melissa Roske @melissaroske.bsky.social · 18/08/2025
Don't miss my interview with MG author @melissadassori.bsky.social on today's @themixed-upfiles.bsky.social blog! Melissa's latest #middlegrade novel, GRETA EVER AFTER releases tomorrow, August 19, from @littlebrownyr.bsky.social. #kidlit fromthemixedupfiles.com/interview-wi...
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LBYR School & Library @lbschool.bsky.social · 18/08/2025
We're so excited for @melissadassori.bsky.social's GRETA EVER AFTER to be out in the world tomorrow! This one's for the aspiring young journalists who wish their lives were a little more magic, or anyone who loves a "relatable coming-of-age story interwoven with dark fairy-tale elements" (Kirkus).
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LBYR School & Library @lbschool.bsky.social · 29/07/2025
@melissadassori.bsky.social's GRETA EVER AFTER comes out in just a few weeks! Get to know this delightful, magical middle grade in @teachingbooks.bsky.social's Meet-the-Author recording: school.teachingbooks.net/book_reading...
school.teachingbooks.net
TeachingBooks Book Reading | Greta Ever After
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Melissa Dassori @melissadassori.bsky.social · 28/07/2025
Entertained myself in the car today listening to this good discussion of the gap in books for 12-15 year olds. #youngteenlit
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Melissa Dassori @melissadassori.bsky.social · 26/07/2025
Before my new book is out next month, check out my first, JR Silver Writes Her World. Buy a copy, tell me via my website where you got it and what address to use (US only, while supplies last), and I’ll send a bookmark and bookplate. #teachers, happy to send multiples to a school. #giveaway #mglit
Slide with cover of JR Silver (girl in front of city landscape holding  notebook that blends into her face), with bookmark and bookplate with excepts of the cover image. Slide says Backlist Bookmark and Bookplate Giveaway!
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Malinda Lo @malindalo.bsky.social · 22/07/2025
It’s a gorgeous day in Boston to support the freedom to read! #MassFreedomToRead @massaabb.bsky.social @authorsabb.bsky.social
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Melissa Dassori @melissadassori.bsky.social · 11/07/2025
If this angle catches your kids’ eye, check out my next #middlegrade book, GRETA EVER AFTER, which has its own storyline of journalistic misdeeds! #teachers Superman’s Other Secret Weakness? Journalism Ethics. www.nytimes.com/2025/07/11/a... @lbschool.bsky.social @unteragency.bsky.social
nytimes.com
Superman’s Other Secret Weakness? Journalism Ethics.
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Melissa Dassori @melissadassori.bsky.social · 10/07/2025
A lovely blurb from the wonderful Kate Albus for GRETA EVER AFTER, coming 8.19. This is a great week to support your favorite bookstore and preorder a copy. #teachers and #librarians, reach out for visits next year. @lbschool.bsky.social
“Fairy tale magic is expertly sprinkled over the real-world magic (and mayhem) of middle school.” Blurb from Kate Albus, author of A Place to Hang the Mood and Nothing Else But Miracles.
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Melissa Dassori @melissadassori.bsky.social · 02/07/2025
Have a movie fan looking for a book? Check out GRETA EVER AFTER (8.19.25). Preorders are so helpful to authors! Links in my bio if you are inclined to add to your collection, or ask your library to order a copy. #middlegrade #mglit #booksky
Movie posters from Harriet the Spy, Into the Woods and Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret—if your reader likes those, check out my next novel, Greta Ever After (cover shows girl sitting on base of cuckoo clock).
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kelly jensen @heykellyjensen.bsky.social · 01/07/2025
Grab your FREE COPY of this toolkit to help guide the next generation of teen advocates, intellectual freedom champions, and library supporters. Inspired by the guide? Don't forget to apply for funding to run your own teen advocacy program! bookriot.com/books-unbann...
bookriot.com
Want To Help Teens Protect The Freedom to Read? Libraries, Apply for Books Unbanned Programming Funding Now
Brooklyn Public Library's Books Unbanned is offering funding for libraries to develop teen programming around the freedom to read.
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Melissa Dassori @melissadassori.bsky.social · 30/06/2025
Thrilled to receive a wonderful review from @ala-booklist.bsky.social for GRETA EVER AFTER! #teachers and #librarians, hope you will check it out for your middle grade readers. #middlegrade #mglit
Image of girl sitting on cuckoo clock from cover of Greta Ever After with quote from Booklist review that reads “Perfect for readers curious about the tribulations of middle school but who appreciate a dash of magic.”
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The Mixed-Up Files @themixed-upfiles.bsky.social · 26/06/2025
Getting published is a dream for many. Here’s an insightful look at lessons learned by debut author Patchree Jones. #kidlit, #middlegrade, #MGlit, #WritingCommunity fromthemixedupfiles.com/a-year-in-re...
fromthemixedupfiles.com
A Year in Rewind: Lessons I Learned as a Debut Author - From The Mixed Up Files
SummaryA look back as my first year as a debut author. Unlike any other job out there, writers and authors don’t have a clear rulebook or career guide to follow. Everyone’s journey is unique and while...
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Melissa Dassori @melissadassori.bsky.social · 20/06/2025
So great to see GRETA EVER AFTER among all these great books.
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Lisa Stringfellow @engagereaders.bsky.social · 18/06/2025
I’ve often shared that THE CHRONICLES OF NARNIA are among my favorite books, so am thrilled to share that KINGDOM OF DUST has been named a finalist for the Mythopoeic Fantasy Award for Children’s Literature! So honored to be recognized along with others I admire ☺️ www.mythsoc.org/news/news-20...
Mythopoeic Fantasy Award for Children

Frances Hardinge and Emily Gravett, Island of Whispers (Harry N. Abrams)
Rajani LaRocca, Sona and the Golden Beasts (Quill Tree Books)
Kaela Rivera, The Cece Rios trilogy (HarperCollins)
David A. Robertson, The Misewa Saga (Tundra Books)
Lisa Stringfellow, Kingdom of Dust (Quill Tree Books)
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Parnassus Books @parnassusbooks.bsky.social · 18/06/2025
Less than two weeks left to donate to our Book’Em summer book drive! We’re matching every single donation, so help us get DOUBLE the books into the hands of kids by donating today — visit parnassusbooks.net/bookem to learn more.
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Melissa Dassori @melissadassori.bsky.social · 18/06/2025
For #mglit readers, don’t forget about the backlist. This book is a total gem.
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Greg Pincus @gregpincus.bsky.social · 17/06/2025
#kidlitchat happens today at 9pm Eastern/6pm Pacific right here on Bluesky. You can join us for an hour chatting with wonderful #kidlit people, if you’d like. We all think you should. But we are like that, all friendly and chatty! Hope to see you soon!
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Melissa Dassori @melissadassori.bsky.social · 11/06/2025
One of my favorite reads last year.
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Melissa Dassori @melissadassori.bsky.social · 11/06/2025
Reminder to go enter this #middlegrade #giveaway for GRETA EVER over on Goodreads.
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Macmillan Children's School & Library Marketing @mackidssl.bsky.social · 02/06/2025
Looking to add to your Pride Month TBR? Tap the link to access our resource center with titles by amazing authors like @cswild.bsky.social, @jennreese.bsky.social, @randyrainbow.bsky.social, @pagepowars.bsky.social & more! bit.ly/3H3O7aI
A collage of book covers on a dark blue background. To the left on an illustrated post-it note are the words: Celebrate Pride Month. Below the post-it note is the logo for MacKids School & Library. There are 8 books covers. 

The titles from left to right on top are: Most Ardently by Gabe Cole Novoa; Ollie in Between by Jess Callans; And They Were Roommates by Page Powars; Right Beside You by Tucker Shaw

The titles from left to right on bottom are: Love, Misha by Askel Aden; Randy Rainbow and the Marvelously Magical Pink Glasses by Randy Rainbow, illustrated by Jaimie MacGibbon; The Flicker by H.E. Edgmon; Flamboyants: The Queer Harlem Renaissance I Wish I'd Known by George M. Johnson, illustrated by Charly Palmer
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Katryn Bury @katrynwrites.bsky.social · 04/06/2025
Take note, querying authors! I was 250 rejections and several books in the hole when I did DVPit and it changed my life 🥰
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The Unter Agency @unteragency.bsky.social · 04/06/2025
@melissadassori.bsky.social's GRETA EVER AFTER has been named a #JuniorLibraryGuild selection. Congratulations, Melissa! #MiddleGrade #MG #fantasy
Book cover (GRETA EVER AFTER) and author headshot (Melissa Dassori) with Junior Library Guild gold seals.
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Middle Grade Coast-to-Coast @mgcoast2coast.bsky.social · 29/05/2025
Looking for books to foster #mentalhealthawarenessmonth conversations? Check out WE ARE NOT ALONE by @katrynwrites.bsky.social in this hopeful story about a recent cancer survivor finding new friends and moving on from grief. #mentalhealth #middlegrade #mglit #kidlit #EduSky #TLSky
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That Librarian: Amanda Jones @librarianjones.com · 20/05/2025
Because access to books and libraries is life-giving and life-saving…because Dr. Carla Hayden was disrespected and should not have been fired…because the basis of any legitimate govt is freedom of speech and expression…be bold and lift our voices together. See you on May 31! ReadStrongAmerica.org
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Sonja Thomas @bysonjathomas.bsky.social · 27/05/2025
Mitigating Misinformation: Librarian creates FAQs for current events #TLSky #librarians www.slj.com/story/newsfe...
slj.com
Mitigating Misinformation: Librarian creates FAQs for current events
Virginia librarian IdaMae Craddock is using her professional research skills to keep facts at the forefront for her students and fellow educators.
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Melissa Dassori @melissadassori.bsky.social · 23/05/2025
Check out the Goodreads #giveaway for GRETA EVER AFTER, my next middle grade coming-of-age story with a magical twist thanks to @littlebrownyr.bsky.social #MGLit #KidLit www.goodreads.com/giveaway/sho...
goodreads.com
Book giveaway for Greta Ever After by Melissa Dassori May 23-Jun 22, 2025
Enter to win one of 20 free copies available. Giveaway dates from May 23-Jun 22, 2025. Enter to win an ARC of Greta Ever After!
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